The case of the missing boy Rahul is once again in the news in Kerala, following a letter that was received by his mother, a few days after the death of Rahul’s father AR Raju. On May 18, 2005, seven-year-old Rahul went missing near his house in Alappuzha triggering a huge search, but no trace could ever be found of him. Rahul’s father AR Raju, fought for 17 years trying to find his son and he died by suicide at the age of 55 on May 22, 2022. After Raju’s death a few days ago, his wife Mini got a letter claiming that they had seen a boy who looked similar to Rahul. They also sent a few recent photos of the boy. The letter mentioned that the boy was currently staying in Nedumbassery in Ernakulam district.
After receiving the letter Mini lodged a complaint with the Alappuzha police chief seeking a detailed enquiry. “The woman who sent the letter is in Mumbai and she claims that she has seen the boy in Mumbai. She said the boy is presently in Nedumbassery. The boy in the photo looks similar to Rahul,” Mini told the media.
But the boy in the photographs sent from Mumbai, has spoken to the media several times in the past about his life. According to him, he has no recollection of his parents and was brought up by his aunt till he was in Class 8. He had also said that his aunt, while admitting him to school, had told them that she had found the boy during the devastating tsunami that had hit the coastline of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh in 2004. After Class 8, his aunt moved to Bengaluru, while he went to Mumbai for a year, and then returned to Nedumbassery and started working to earn enough to resume his studies. He also remembers he was staying in Pathanapuram Gandhi Bhavan orphanage in his younger age. The boy came into focus after a policeman from Kerala posted his pictures on social media about his resemblance to the missing boy Rahul, two years ago. But the young man himself in an interview to a media outlet, said that he believed it to be a case of mistaken identity.
On May 18 2005, Rahul who was playing cricket in the ground near his house in Alappuzha went missing. Raju, Rahul’s father was working abroad at the time. Later, he returned to Kerala and spent the next 17 years searching for his son. The Crime branch which took up the investigation, handed over the case to the CBI in June 2005. It was in February 2012, the CBI submitted its closure report on the case. Though the central agency tried to close the case in 2009, investigation continued for three more years, after the Court declined to accept the closure report. But they couldn't make any progress in the investigation. The CBI’s closure report mentioned the involvement of the family’s neighbour Monichan, but his involvement was later ruled out.
The local police had taken a few people in custody and questioned them based on leads, but none of them panned out. However Mini still believes that her son is alive and might return home one day.